Media Statement by Kevin Kamps of Beyond Nuclear Regarding US Nuclear Regulatory Commission Approval of Two New Atomic Reactors at Vogtle, Georgia

For Immediate Release

Media Statement by Kevin Kamps of Beyond Nuclear Regarding US Nuclear Regulatory Commission Approval of Two New Atomic Reactors at Vogtle, Georgia

WASHINGTON - The following statement was released this afternoon in response to the NRC decision:

"An NRC license does not guarantee ultimate project success. Atomic reactors have been NRC licensed and then nearly, or even entirely, constructed, and still blocked from operating.

Two reactors at Midland, Michigan were almost completely constructed when watchdogs proved they were sinking into the ground like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. They were then cancelled, at a loss of billions of dollars.

Nuclear power plants in Marble Hill and Bailey, Indiana that were under construction were cancelled when the Citizens Action Coalition proved in court that the nuclear utilities’ ‘Construction Work in Progress’ charges on electricity bills had been illegal, forcing the return of hundreds of millions of dollars to ratepayers.

A nuclear power plant at Shoreham, New York, was entirely constructed, but then prevented from operating because of the impossibility of mass evacuation during an accident. Again, billions of dollars were wasted.

If Vogtle 3 and 4 default on their loan repayments, it'll be 15 times worse than the Solyndra debacle. U.S. taxpayers would be on the hook for $8.3 billion due to the federal nuclear loan guarantees that President Obama awarded to the nuclear utilities proposing Vogtle 3 and 4. The nuclear utilities have no skin in the game, representing a tremendous moral hazard.
And if eventually fired up, radiological risks for residents downwind and downstream of Vogtle nuclear power plant will be added to the financial risks for American taxpayers. As shown at Fukushima Daiichi in Japan, an accident at the Vogtle site could render all four atomic reactors unusable, not to mention the off-site radioactive catastrophe."

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Beyond Nuclear aims to educate and activate the public about the connections between nuclear power and nuclear weapons and the need to abandon both to safeguard our future. Beyond Nuclear advocates for an energy future that is sustainable, benign and democratic.

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